Amrish Puri: Roles which made him eternal in cinema

Amrish Puri, the dreaded Mogambo of Bollywood and Mola Ram of Hollywood, will always be alive in the hearts of his fans and say, “Mogambo khush hua.” The most loved villain defined terror on the silver screen, and was known for his unique voice and powerful personality. From Mogambo to Simran’s Babuji, Amrish Puri brought his characters to life with his raging presence. We bring to you his most popular avatars which made him eternal in Bollywood.

Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge - Amrish Puri, who played the strict father of Kajol in the biggest romantic blockbuster Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, is still remembered for his climax dialogue, “Ja Simran, jeele apni zindagi” (Go Simran, live your life). The heart of a stone-cold father melted with the plight of his daughter Simran (Kajol) and Shah Rukh Khan (Raj) and he finally allowed her to join him on the moving train. His last line in the film is now a part of our everyday lives and is often used while telling a girl to enjoy her life.

Mr India - Think of the most frightening villain and the image of Mogambo comes to chill our spines. Amrish Puri, who played Mogambo in Anil Kapoor and Sridevi starrer Mr India, can be regarded as the legendary villain of Bollywood. Still copied by his fans for his famous line, “Mogambo khush hua (Mogambo is happy now),” Mogambo was the powerful evil scientist who had a kingdom of his own which he created with his wicked practices. Thought the character was hated by the moviegoers, Amrish Puri was loved for his acting excellence.

Gadar: Ek Prem Katha - Amrish Puri played the unrelenting father of Sakina in one of the biggest blockbusters of cinema Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. He was believed to be dead in riots, but Sakina discovers him to be alive as Mayor of Lahore. He was then shown as the opposing father who is not ready to accept his Hindu-Indian son-in-law Sunny Deol. He plays the baddie till the end and even accidentally shoots his daughter, but finally accepts him leading to a happy ending.

Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom -Before becoming the most dreaded villain in the 1987 film Mr India, Amrish Puri was already the most hated villain in international cinema for playing the role of terrifying Mola Ram in Steven Spielberg’s Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom in 1984. Though turned down by critics for being too dark and gruesome, the film was among the top ten grossers of that time. Amrish’s character was extremely hated for being the demonic thuggee priest who performs rituals of human sacrifices and enslaves children.

Chachi 420 - Always seen as a heartless villain on screen, Amrish Puri was seen hitting at a man disguised as a woman in comedy film Chachi 420. Amrish played Tabu’s father in the film starring Kamal Haasan in the lead role of Lakshmi Godbole. He unknowingly flirts with his own son-in-law who is the middle-aged nanny of Tabu’s daughter in the successful flick. For the actor always seen as a villain, this was a welcome changes.

Nayak - Amrish Puri played the indifferent chief minister who challenges Anil Kapoor, a journalist, to take his place for a day in the cult film Nayak. The CM, who callously ignores the riots to protect his vote bank but is caught on the wrong foot by a TV reporter, was wonderfully portrayed by Amrish Puri. He competed with Anil’s positive role with his villainous presence in the film which went on to become one of the most inspiring movies of all times.

Hulchul -The dhoti-clad old man with a walking stick in his hand, raging with anger on the mention of the word ‘woman’ is still fresh in the minds of his fans. Amrish Puri played the furious father in Hulchul, who banned the entry of females in his house and even forbade his sons from getting married. This villainous avatar in the comedy film was however his most entertaining role which left his fans in splits.

Nagina -Amrish Puri played the snake-charmer Baba Bhairo Nath in the film Nagina starring Sridevi as a nagin. Amrish was seen in a tantrik’s get-up, wooing the snakes in the film which was the biggest solo hit of that year. He wanted to acquire the sacred mani, the location of which is known only to the nagin Sridevi. As much as the moviegoers loved Sridevi, they equally hated the character of tantrik.

Karan Arjun - Amrish Puri played the wicked Thakur Durjan Singh in the Salman Khan-Shah Rukh Khan starrer Karan Arjun. The man, who killed Karan and Arjun’s father and then the two, caused extreme suffering to Raakhee's character for more than 20 years. He was hated by the cine lovers for obvious reasons. Amrish happily pulled the ruthless act with excellence like always and was even nominated for Filmfare Best Performance in a Negative Role.